Live sporting events entertain and attract millions of remote viewers. Many are broadcast via satellite world-wide. Some viewers prefer racing events, such as horse races or automotive races. Others prefer sports-team events including football, baseball, basketball, and soccer. When an international or championship sporting event is played, viewers frequently express great enthusiasm for their favorite team.
It is not uncommon for viewers to also enjoy betting on the results of their favorite sporting events. Proponents of sports betting generally regard it as a hobby for sports fans that increases their interest in particular sporting events, thus benefiting the leagues, teams and players they bet on through higher attendances and television audiences. Many agree that socialization among sports fans results both from a shared common interest in a particular sporting event, and from a shared common interest in predicting the results of the sporting event.
Sports event enthusiasts would like to have better access to sporting event betting to increase the entertainment value of such events. Accordingly, there is a need to expand the variety and locations where sporting event betting can occur.
Sporting event betting terminals have been developed, which are commonly placed in public locations where betting is permitted, including malls, shops, and grocery stores. Such betting terminals are increasing in popularity, but standalone kiosks may be expensive to build, distribute, maintain and operate.
In recent years, the seemingly distinct boundary between point of sale terminals and gaming machines has dissipated. This is evidenced by recent technical publications.
US Patent Application Publication No. US20100120520 to Roemer et al., for example, discloses a point-of-sale gaming system. The system comprises a point of sale device and a gaming machine in communication with a point of sale device. A credit for change given at the point of sale is transferred to the gaming machine as a wager. Winnings are paid via the point of sale device, such as in the form of money from a cash register, or in the form of a redeemable winnings receipt.
While the Roemer system represents a step forward in the art, it has no mechanism to enable betting on sporting events. Additionally, the concept of throughput time for point of sale transactions is not adequately addressed. This can result in time delays and inconvenience for a user of such a system and/or additional users that are waiting in a check-out line.
International Patent Application Publication No. WO2009/101555A1 to Ekisheva et al. discloses a way of using change given at a point of sale terminal as a stake in a lottery. Like the Romer et al. system, there is no mechanism to facilitate sporting event betting.
There is a need to provide new betting opportunities at a point of sale location, which is cost-effective and which does not significantly increase the average point of sale transaction time.